All-American paradox: US has long struggled with love-hate relationship with immigrants

Oddly for a nation made up mostly of immigrants, the United States has always had a problem with immigration. Long before President Donald Trump called for building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, generations of Americans have advocated limiting immigration. In the 1800s, the Irish were a favorite target, and newspaper want ads commonly included the phrase, "No Irish need apply." Also in the 19th century, anti-immigration sentiment was codified in federal laws that singled out Asians. Subsequent federal laws targeted Italians and other Southern Europeans.

Scholars have identified three waves of immigration: the first era, the second era and the current era. As the U.S.